The matchmaking of marie.., p.12
The Matchmaking of Marielle Clarac, page 12
“I don’t think Her Majesty would do that. She can be strict, but I don’t think she’d behave maliciously or unfairly. She doesn’t seem like that kind of person.”
“I know. I don’t think she’s mistreating me really, or that it’s anything malicious on her part. She simply needed me to work here for appearances’ sake, nothing more.”
“Julianne, that can’t be true.”
“Honestly, it doesn’t matter.” She placed the mop down on the floor and walked over to me. Taking the cloth from my hand, she smiled gently. “It’s all right. I didn’t have any hopes to begin with, so there are none to be dashed. You don’t need to stay here to accompany me anymore, either. I’m sure you must be sad to be separated from Lord Simeon so soon after your wedding. He must be feeling lonely as well, so go back home as soon as you can. I’m sorry for making you join me here when none of it matters anymore.”
My friend, kind as always, was more concerned about me. However, the one feeling more sad and lonely than anyone was surely Julianne herself.
It can’t be true that she had no hopes to begin with. Even though she knew it would be difficult, I’m sure she believed in the possibility. The tears she shed in His Highness’s arms were no trivial matter. No one could experience that degree of joy without building up any hopes at all.
“What about His Highness?” I asked. “He’s determined to marry you. If you’re saying none of it matters anymore, are you giving him the cold shoulder?”
She paused and her amber-colored eyes wavered. It was clear that she hadn’t thought of it in those terms. However, she then bit her lip and nodded. “Yes. I’ve had enough of all this bother. After all the time I’ve spent with him, I’m sure His Highness has had his fill as well.”
Before I could respond to this untrue assertion, footsteps suddenly echoed across the room. Prince Severin appeared from behind the doorway with a look that said his movement was not intentional.
He really is awful at hiding his presence. I’m sure it wasn’t just me that noticed him there, but Julianne as well.
His Highness, unlike Julianne, wore an anguished expression. She looked away, not meeting his sad gaze.
“Julianne,” he began, but he was unable to say anything further, and walked over to us in silence. He stopped in front of Julianne and looked at her even though she wouldn’t look back at him. Their eyes did not meet. This one-sided gaze and heavy silence continued for a while, until suddenly His Highness’s shoulders sank and he let out a breath.
“I say, I may be utterly worthless, but it still hurts to hear you say it.”
He spoke in a voice so despondent that I immediately felt sorry for him. My urge to butt in was powerful, but I fought against it with all my might. I knew he wasn’t about to let it end this way. He wasn’t that sort of person.
In a flash, His Highness had kneeled before her. He firmly lifted his head, trying to meet Julianne’s gaze. In his eyes were a sage light filled with penetrating insight and a tenaciousness that bordered on obstinacy.
“I took charge of convincing the king and queen, but no sooner did I look away and look back than I found this shameful situation occurring right under my nose. I have no excuse for subjecting you to this pain and sadness. My own worthlessness has driven you into this frightful situation, hasn’t it?”
“No, that’s not true,” Julianne replied, hurriedly shaking her head.
He took her hand. In a panic, she tried to pull it back.
“No, you mustn’t! Don’t touch me, please! My hands are filthy.”
“I don’t give a fig about that. In fact, I’d rather be filthy. If you’re filthy and I’m not, how can I possibly feel at ease? I must be every bit as filthy as you are. For you to defile me would bring me the sweetest joy!”
“Stop phrasing it in such an easily misinterpreted manner! I’m covered in dirt from my cleaning work, that’s all!”
She thrust the cloth she was holding into his face, and in the moment that he flinched, she seized the opportunity to brush off his hand. She drew back a few steps, and he laughed slightly, looking down at the cloth with a curious expression.
“Now there’s an idea. Perhaps I should lend you a hand?”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I refuse your help. I simply do not allow it. You’re certain to be an even bigger impediment than Marielle.”
I couldn’t let this go unremarked. “You had to say that, didn’t you? How mean!”
His Highness stood. The cloth in his hand looked far too unbefitting of a prince, so I stepped forward to take it off him, then returned to my previous position.
“I must say,” said His Highness, “I’m flummoxed by the way you’re being treated. I’m sure that Mother—Her Majesty—has some sort of wily plan in mind, but I haven’t the foggiest idea what it might be. I am truly sorry. I’ll try to wheedle some information out of her and implore her to assign you to more fitting tasks. I ask you only to remain patient a little longer.”
“No, don’t, I—”
“Don’t say you’re giving up, I beg of you.”
Her urge to run away was visible in her eyes, but His Highness refused to ease off.
“No, that very premise is not quite right. You’d given up from the very first moment, hadn’t you? All along you’ve felt that it’s a losing bet—that you’d never be accepted. However, I never capitulated, so you were happy to keep our dalliance going. That, I was sure, represented your true intentions.”
She didn’t say a word, so he continued.
“However, I’d understood that you were receptive to my feelings. I thought that the only matter that still worried you was others’ acceptance of the match—that you fundamentally accepted me as a suitor and weren’t refusing to marry me as such. Was I mistaken? If I really was bothering you and nothing more, tell me. I want to hear your true feelings, not a deception meant to drive me away.”
Julianne didn’t answer. Of course she didn’t really feel that His Highness was bothering her, but she couldn’t bring herself to say so.
All along, there had been a spark of deep affection in her eyes whenever she looked at him. His Highness was not only dashingly attractive, he was also good-humored and kind. He was occasionally quite a fool, but always in a way that made him more endearing, and it reflected an earnestness that never faltered. Overall, he was the sort of person one grows to like more and more by getting to know him. If I hadn’t ever met Lord Simeon, and had just met His Highness on his own, it was possible that I’d have fallen in love with him instead.
Any girl’s heart would race if they had a man like that showing her all his attention and expressing his devotion to her. From the outside looking in, I could tell that Julianne had rapidly been charmed by him. She had simply denied it, even to herself, because accepting it was too dangerous. He was someone she could never marry, so she had given up on the prospect from the start.
If she let go of that sentiment, Julianne had no reason to decline his proposal. In all likelihood, though, the only one who could convince her was the man himself. I silently took a step back to give them more space.
“Julianne, if you could ever see me as your beau, I ask you to hold on rather than giving up so quickly. No, more than that—I beg you, please, don’t abandon me!”
Your Highness, I must say, that sounds a little too pathetic!
It was valid, though. He needed the chance to show her she could depend on him. If, despite his deep yearning for her, he couldn’t rescue her from her plight at this critical juncture, how could he be trusted to keep her out of harm’s way at any other time? He had to show enough dedication that she would hold out until he could manage it rather than giving up.
Just like His Highness had before, I drew my body through the doorway and stood out of view, watching the two of them.
A voice said, “He really is determined, isn’t he? It sounds a tad pathetic for him to say that so directly, but it is admirable that he’s willing to go to such effort.”
I replied, “Yes, he’s taken a good look at Julianne’s situation, and he knows he has to do something about it. There’s something very precious about that feeling.”
Julianne lifted her head and showed His Highness a smile. “I have no plans to abandon you. Nor do I particularly feel I’ve been driven into a frightful situation.”
“Julianne, I mean it, I—”
“Don’t make that face. It’s quite all right, I assure you. Cleaning is a part of my everyday life. I don’t find it painful or upsetting in the slightest. No one is mistreating me, and my volume of work is the same as anyone else’s. I’m just here doing entirely normal work, that’s all. I’ll do as thorough a job as I can until I’m told to go home.”
His Highness sighed loudly. She had once again avoided giving a clear answer, instead dodging the key question of how she felt. No doubt His Highness had noticed this as well, but he backed down, apparently realizing that he wasn’t going to get anything else from her.
Importantly, though, she had left the possibility open. She hadn’t said she wished to end it now, which meant she hadn’t completely given up hope. Now it was time for His Highness to play his part. If he could show himself to be a man she could rely on, he would rapidly improve in her estimation. Somehow you have to take the ever-pessimistic Julianne and make her see the good side! Please!
The voice behind me spoke again. “Hmm, the situation is rather unclear. Is it mutual love, or unrequited love on his part? It’s hard to tell.”
“I’m certain it’s mutual,” I replied with a half-smile, looking at the couple. “Julianne is prudent to a fault, that’s all. She tends to expect the worst.”
Then I suddenly cocked my head. Whose voice was that?
I’d replied, but I didn’t even know who I was talking to. The voice was on the deeper side, and sounded oddly familiar even though I didn’t recall ever hearing it before.
I turned to look. Hiding behind the same door frame, peering into the room, was a man of my father’s generation, though slightly older. He had a tough, masculine face, with black hair and eyes. His features resembled those of certain other people I knew very well, and he bore himself with great dignity even while secretly peeking into a room.
When I realized who it was, I froze in position with my body turned halfway around.
With a playful wink, this man—this very important man—put a finger to his lips and shushed me.
This can’t be real...can it? What is happening!?
Inside the room, the two of them continued to converse. Since I was still stuck in my strange pose, I could only hear them, rather than see them.
“If I were to say that all life experience comes in handy eventually, normally I’d fear I’d let Marielle addle my brain too much, but it seems true at this particular juncture,” said the prince. “Who’d have thought that your years of housework would be such a godsend at the palace?”
“Yes, if I were an ordinary noblewoman, I wouldn’t even know how to mop a floor. I’d probably have cried over this meager amount of work, feeling as though I was being abused.”
“That may well be, yes.”
“Despite my parents’ many faults, I suppose I should be grateful to them. Of course, it is their fault I’m in this situation to begin with.”
Another man arrived and stood behind the one I was facing. He gave me a friendly wave. This charming older gentleman had the splendid aura of a knight about him, but his white royal guards’ uniform was worn in a casual and unkempt manner. I couldn’t remember ever seeing him dressed neatly.
“You’re formidable indeed,” said His Highness. “Despite it all, you don’t seem to bear your parents any ill will. You don’t see them simply as the ones who brought about your misfortune.”
“I do wish they weren’t so frivolous, but they’re not all bad. They do have far too many bad points, of course! In the end, though, they are my family. I can’t hate them.”
“Quite so, yes.”
They were quickly leaving the original topic behind, and the romantic atmosphere had vanished along with it. In the process, His Highness’s voice grew less tense. He began to sound as though he was enjoying himself.
He continued, “I’m glad you’re different from the average noblewoman, frankly. Wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ll talk to the queen at the earliest opportunity and ask for you to be treated with the care you deserve. Please sit tight until then.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t be going anywhere. I must say, though, there is one small thing that’s bothering me.”
“Tell me.”
“I don’t mind doing an honest day’s work. Whether it’s cleaning, carrying, or otherwise, I’ll do my level best. However...will I be receiving payment?”
His Highness reacted with a strange sound of confusion—a drastic change from his newfound calmness. The two behind me let out quiet exclamations of “Hmm?” and “Oho!” respectively.
“What!?” Unable to believe my ears, I finally thawed out and turned to peer into the room again.
“Pay...ment?” uttered His Highness. Confronted with this entirely functional idea that was worlds away from all matters of dreams and passion, he couldn’t manage any other response.
With a serious expression, Julianne nodded. “Yes, payment. After all, being a housemaid isn’t volunteer work, is it? I’m quite certain that it’s normally a paid position.”
“Oh. Yes, uhm, that’s true, I’d wager.”
“I’d have expected to be told about my wages at the very start, as is only proper, but I haven’t heard a single word about the subject, so I’m beginning to feel concerned. Surely it hasn’t been assumed that I’d work for free? I understand the reason why I’ve been called to the palace, but doing all this work without being compensated for it would be completely unreasonable.”
His Highness nodded mechanically. Given how rationally and vehemently she made her case, he had no choice but to agree.
“I don’t demand an excessively high wage. If it’s the same amount as any other new recruit would receive, that would be plenty. It could even be reduced if this counted as a trial period. I wouldn’t mind. I don’t expect too much, only to be paid fairly. To come here I had to turn down some commissions for my side job, and, well, there’s a book coming out next month that I have to buy.”
She balled her hands into fists and leaned forward eagerly.
“I’ve been waiting ages for it. I simply must have it. I don’t want to miss my chance under any circumstances. I also want at least two copies—one to read and one to keep on the shelf forever. In an ideal world, I’d also like one more to use for evangelizing purposes.”
“Evangelizing?” he murmured, blinking in bewilderment.
As someone who was likely to be a victim of her evangelizing, he seemed to more or less understand despite being stunned. Now that he understood the fangirl mindset, he was no longer someone who was simply shocked and overwhelmed.
“Understood,” he said, recovering. “I’ll take charge of that matter as well and find out what’s what. In the event that no payment is planned, I’ll compensate you from my own assets.”
“Absolutely not!” she insisted. “Wages come from the employer! Though I suppose you are related to the employer, in this instance you’re more on my side than theirs. If you bear the cost, it’s still effectively unpaid labor on their part. You must arrange it to be paid from the palace coffers!”
Spluttering, he replied, “Indeed, quite right! I’ll insist that you be paid a fair sum.”
“Thank you.”
As someone who had spent her life struggling for money, Julianne wasn’t about to let a matter of payment go unremarked. Beneath her now meek-looking face, she was no doubt wondering how much she would earn and calculating how many books it would allow her to buy.
There was no longer the tiniest fragment of a sweet atmosphere hanging in the air between this supposed pair of lovers. It really does seem as though patheticness is His Highness’s best friend who follows him wherever he goes.
The black-haired man behind me gave a brief chuckle, sounding rather impressed. “My own wife can be terrifyingly firm at times, but this one holds her own. Impressive to leave a man his age cowering like that. At this rate it seems as though he might manage it on his own.”
After this last comment, spoken with a hint of laughter in his voice, the man gave me a light pat on the head for some reason, then turned around. Raising his hand as if to wave goodbye, he walked away. The knight accompanying him did the same and followed after him. I saw them off with a curtsy.
My goodness, I swear my heart almost stopped beating. How could I help being scared out of my wits when the king suddenly appeared behind me? For a moment I’d even tried to convince myself it was someone else who merely looked like him. I do wish he hadn’t snuck up on me like that, but honestly, his playful smile did sort of make me start fangirling. Do I recall hearing that he has a blackhearted side as well? I can’t stand it, it’s too wonderful!
It seemed as though he might have come out of concern for Julianne. If so, perhaps she hadn’t been coldly rejected after all. I hoped it was safe to believe that.
I felt more optimistic now. Although the queen was the one taking the initiative, this event was still enough to offer some hope. His Highness and Julianne had also come to more of an understanding and would put in the work they needed to. I was confident that it would turn out all right.
A different knight walked along the corridor in the opposite direction, passing the two men walking away. He quickly moved out of the path of his king and his superior officer, then stood and saluted them.
As he walked by, the Captain delivered a vigorous strike to Lord Simeon’s body. Puzzled, Lord Simeon watched them go, then noticed me there and asked with his gaze whether something had happened. I smiled and shrugged, wondering how I could possibly explain it.
